Sigiriya | Sri Lanka | Travel | Destinations

Ancient Cities in Sri Lanka

Sigiriya is an ancient palace located in the Central Province, Sri Lanka. The name refers to a site of historical and archaeological significance that is dominated by a massive column of rock nearly 200 metres (660 ft) high.

Sigiriya has been declared a World Heritage site by UNESCO.

According to the ancient Sri Lankan chronicle the Culavangsha, this site was selected by King Kasyapa (477 – 495 CE) for his new capital. He built his palace on the top of this rock and decorated its sides with colourful frescoes. On a small plateau about halfway up the side of this rock he built a gateway in the form of an enormous lion. The name of this place is derived from this structure — Sīhāgiri, the Lion Rock. The capital and the royal palace were abandoned after the king's death. It was used as a Buddhist monastery until the 14th century. It is one of the best preserved examples of ancient urban planning. It is the most visited historic site in Sri Lanka.

Experiences

Around Sigiriya

Paintings

The paintings would have covered most of the western face of the rock, an area 140 metres long and 40 metres high. There are references in the graffiti to 500 ladies in these paintings. However, most have been lost forever. More frescoes, different from those on the rock face, can be seen elsewhere, for example on the ceiling of the location called the "Cobra Hood Cave"

Water Gardens

The water gardens are built symmetrically on an east-west axis. They are connected with the outer moat on the west and the large artificial lake to the south of the Sigiriya rock. All the pools are also interlinked using an underground conduit network fed by the lake, and connected to the moats.

Pidurangala Temple

Pidurangala Temple, a small Buddhist temple built by the founder king of Sigiriya, located just a mile away from Lion Rock. In ancient times the king came across a community of monks and hermits occupying the area, the king built this temple complex to house them.

Map

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